What is the life cycle of a sale? Do you imagine that every time you meet a new potential client that you will close the deal? How long does it take to make a sale? If you don’t have a realistic expectation you may feel as though you’re spinning your wheels. You may also feel as though your efforts are for naught.
How Long Does It Take To Make A Sale?
We know it’s not always easy to think about talking with someone and walking away without a signed contract or without a check in your hand, right? You need to make sales and make money in order to remain viable? Take a deep breath and think back to the last time you met with someone and make a decision right then and there? When was it? Probably at the grocery store, but probably not when you’re just starting out a process of buying goods or services, right?
Here are the steps I have found to be part of the sale life cycle:
- Prospecting. You need to meet people to get them into yoru pipeline. Without connections and prospects, how will you grow?
- Get out of the office. It is so easy to stay in the office and fire off emails to potential clients. I urge you to get out of the office and shake hands and make real face to face connections.
- Pain points. Identify those in a potential client and speak to those. Don’t make your approach a one sizes fits all. Tailor the conversation to the individual.
- Listen. In order to address your potential client’s pain points you need to listen. I always urge people to resist the urge to fill in silences in the conversation. Let your client mull over the situation and ask you questions. Delve deep and understand how your mousetrap will help them and how it’s better than the mousetrap they’re using today.
- Commit. Once your prospect is ready to take the next step with you, you want to clearly spell out what you will provide him, what he needs to get you and what the cost of that exchange will be. Be transparent and clear up any potential gray areas.
Sales is not a one and done nor should you ever forget that everytime you meet someone, he or she could be a potential client and you need to always put your best foot forward.